Okami Half
by GrapeFuzzBat
Summary: Gosunkugi has mastered his knowledge of the dark arts, and sends Ranma back in time hundreds of years into the past. What he didn't count on was Akane following him. Now Ranma and Akane must team up with Amaterasu and Issun, and save Nippon!
1. Chapter 1

Hey there, It's GrapeFuzz! Yes, I am alive (surprisingly)! Well, Kingdom Infected is on a definite hiatus right now, and I probably won't be working on it until summer. School really sucks, you know? But rest assured, there will be new chapters in Kingdom Infected eventually, I've barely just begun with it. In the meantime, I wanted to give you readers something to appologize for KI's long hiatus. I've been reading Ranma 1/2 a lot lately, as it is one of my favorite series of all time, and I've also been playing the game Okami. Then I started getting tons of ideas on how to cross the two! Cliche'd how it happens, and very farfetched, but it sounded like a lot of fun so I just had to do it. Basically what this will be is the entire storyline of Okami with Ranma added in, so for those of you who have started playing Okami or haven't beaten the game yet, I will warn you now that I am about to spoil the entire plot. Things will be a little different with Ranma in there, but not much. So if you enjoy Ranma 1/2 and have played Okami, read on! This is going to be a great story!

-GrapeFuzzBat

Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 is copyrighted to Rumiko Takahashi and Viz media. Okami is copyrighted to Capcom and Clover Studios. This story is purely fan-based, with no intention of plagiarism or copyright infringement.

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_Long, long ago, a tiny hamlet known as Kamiki lay nested in a grove of proud and beautiful cherry blossoms. Each and every tree around the quiet burg was honored as a god. However, the village was not without its dark secrets._

_To satiate the appetite of Yamato no Orochi, a fearsome, cave-dwelling beast, a young maiden was offered as a sacrifice at the annual Moon Festival held in Kamiki. With a body like a mountain and eight heads mounted on necks the size of tree trunks, its blood-red eyes alone were said to curse anyone who gazed into them. No one dared disobey the horrific beast._

_When the night of the sacrifice drew near…a mysterious white wolf appeared outside the village. This wolf, its coat as brilliant as snow, was dubbed Shiranui. The wolf kept a watchful eye on anyone who ventured outside the village, and made a habit of patrolling the streets at night. People assumed the wolf to be a familiar of Orochi._

_One villager took it upon himself to face the fearsome Shiranui. The warrior Izanagi, also known as Nagi, attempted many times to challenge the wolf, but his attempts were thwarted by Shiranui's swift movements._

_Before long, the night of the accursed festival had arrived. A white plumed arrow heralded the coming sacrifice. Piercing the sky, the arrow sunk its shaft squarely into the home of Izanami, also known as Nami, the village's most beautiful maiden. Nagi, who harbored a secret love for Nami, was enraged by this sign. Determined to put an end to Orochi once and for all, Nagi traveled to the beast's cave in place of his beloved. _

_The Moon Cave, a place as dark as evil itself, served as Orochi's home. As Nagi stood bravely before the entrance, a beast appeared, eyes glowing crimson upon eight thrashing necks. Orochi stood tall before him, anxious for another sacrifice. Nagi leapt with incredible grace, swinging his blade valiantly._

_On and on he sliced, well into the moonless night…but Orochi's hide was like steel. The blade left nary a scratch. At long last, Nagi, his energy spent from the intense battle, dropped to his knees, fatigued and gasping for breath. He knew he was staring death in the face. It was then that the wolf appeared. As if to protect Nagi, it stood its ground before Orochi. In the darkness of the cave, the wolf's coat shone brilliantly. Alas, it was Shiranui, the wolf that dwelled outside the village. Baring its fearsome claws, the wolf leapt toward Orochi. Orochi reared its terrifying heads, readying its fangs for battle._

_The two beasts struggled wildly, thrashing in the darkness. Mysterious and terrifying, the spectacle continued. Shiranui summoned gusts of divine wind to counter Orochi's flames. As Orochi closed in on Shiranui, sharpened fangs glistening, a gigantic tree suddenly sprung forth, shielding the wolf. Shiranui fought gallantly to gain the upper hand. However Orochi, protected by a mystical power, was not easily bested. _

_Shiranui, covered in gashes, majestic coat dyed crimson, stood exhausted before the mighty Orochi. Orochi saw a chance to strike what would be the final blow, but Shiranui refused to give in. With its last ounce of strength, the majestic wolf gazed heavenward and unleashed a mighty howl. Suddenly, the black clouds overhead dissipated, and the light from the moon above glinted off Nagi's sword as a beacon of hope._

_Guided by his sword, Nagi, who had been taking shelter in the shadows, stood proudly to face his adversary. Channeling all his strength into his scarred and battered arms, he leapt ferociously toward Orochi, his sword poised high. The golden sword danced in his hands like a puppet on a string. One by one, Orochi's fearsome heads separated from their owner._

_Orochi's broken body collapsed in a lake of its own blood. In that instant, the curse that plagued the villagers was lifted. As the battle subsided, the sun shone once again in the sky. Shiranui had succumbed to Orochi's poison and struggled to breathe. Nagi scooped the beast into his arms and returned to Kamiki._

_When they reached the village, Shiranui was no longer moving. The village elder gently stroked the wolf's head. In response, Shiranui let out a hoarse and pitiful bark, then closed its eyes and drifted off as if into slumber._

_Peace had at last returned to Kamiki Village. In honor of Shiranui's heroic exploits, the villagers erected a shrine and placed a statue of the wolf within it. Nagi's sword was christened "Tsukuyomi", and placed inside the Moon Cave. The villagers all looked forward to an age of endless peace._

…

Akane finished reading aloud and closed the book. "What a great story, huh Ranma?" she said.

Ranma lay on his side with his back facing her and his head resting on his palm. "Just sounds like some boring little kid's bedtime story to me. What's so great about it?" he replied.

Akane glared at Ranma's back. "It just so happens to be one of my favorite stories!" she snapped. "My mother used to read it to me when I was little. I found the book in the attic when I was cleaning and I thought I'd share it with you, but of course you never appreciate anything I do anyways!"

Ranma turned his head to look at her. "Well, sorry to burst your bubble, but fairy tales were never my thing. What do you take me for, a five-year-old or something?"

Akane pressed her hands on the table and leaned toward him. "You certainly like to act like one most of the time!"

Ranma stuck his tongue out at her. "At least I don't act like an un-cute tomboy who can't get a date!"

"That does it, Ranma!" Akane shouted, pounding her fist on the table and standing abruptly. She chucked the book at his head, which he evaded easily and made another face at her. They then took off on a wild goose chase throughout the house, Akane picking up whatever was in reach to use as a weapon or a projectile. The Tendo family ignored the routine as usual and continued minding their own business, Genma (currently a panda) and Soun playing a game of shogi, Kasumi preparing dinner, and Nabiki reading a magazine.

Once he'd managed to lose Akane, Ranma went up to the roof for some peace and quiet. He could hear Akane shouting for him still, but he ignored her and assumed his former position, lying on his side. "Geez," he grumbled, "she really is a violent maniac. Can't say a word without her going off like a loose cannon. How can my old man possibly expect me to marry a chick like her?" He rolled over onto his back, putting his hands behind his head and letting out a sigh. He pushed any and all thoughts about his macho-chick fiancée out of his mind as he gazed up into the evening sky and listened to the chirp of insects.

However, the semi-peaceful atmosphere was broken by the sound of hammering on wood. His curiosity aroused, Ranma sat up and peered over the edge of the roof to locate the source of the noise. It was none other than the voodoo-obsessed Hikaru Gosunkugi, pounding away at a straw doll on a tree in the courtyard again. In addition to the usual tools that Gosunkugi had with him, Ranma took notice of a bag with various objects in it, probably more of his occult paraphernalia. What was that little freak Gosunkugi up to this time?

Once he finished with his voodoo doll, Gosunkugi went over to the bag and retrieved the array of objects, snickering to himself as he went over to the pond in the courtyard and began tossing the objects in one by one. Curious, Ranma squinted to get a clear look at what the objects were. There was some kind of leafy sprig, a piece of red cloth, a shiny round crystal, a stone bowl, and a fossilized shell. Once he finished putting the objects in the water, Gosunkugi rose and laughed a high-pitched, maniacal cackle. "This time Saotome…this time I shall be rid of you forever and Akane shall be mine!" he said. He began laughing again, but was abruptly cut off by Ranma landing on his head.

"Whatcha doin' there, Gosunkugi?" Ranma asked, leaning forward to get a better look at the objects scattered in the pond. He also noticed that there were some strange symbols drawn in the silt at the bottom of the pond. He had never seen Gosunkugi do something so elaborate. The freak was definitely up to something…and whatever it was, it was probably something serious…if it worked, anyways.

"Gmmph fffmm mmmph!" Gosunkugi tried to speak, but his voice was muffled due to his face being planted into the ground. Instead, he picked up his voodoo mallet and took a swipe at Ranma, who hopped aside avoiding the strike. "Finally grew enough of a backbone to take swing at me, eh Gosunkugi?" Ranma said with a grin, putting his hands on his hips in a taunting stance.

Gosunkugi picked himself up off the ground and rubbed the dirt off his face. Then he shied away a little to put some distance between himself and Ranma. "Er…that was just to get you off of my head." He whimpered. "Don't take it the wrong way, I have no intention of fighting you, Saotome."

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Ranma jeered. "What is all that stuff, anyway? What are you planning to do?" he asked.

Gosunkugi laughed and went back over to his tool kit, retrieving a mortar full of dried herbs and beginning to grind them with a pestle. "You had best say your prayers now, Saotome. I have mastered my dark arts, and have devised a plan to make you disappear forever!" he said. He took out a satchel filled with a dark sand, and mixed some of it in with the herbs as he continued to grind them.

"Oh really now?" Ranma said, his voice laced with sarcasm. "And what's this great plan of yours?"

Gosunkugi continued to take various powders and sands and mix them in with the herbs. "You think I'm foolish enough to tell you?" he said.

"Well, how do you know it's going to work then?" Ranma asked.

"I've already tested it out." Gosunkugi replied with a sinister grin.

Ranma was about to return with a clever remark, but before he could, Akane's shrill voice rang out through the air. "Got you!" She screamed, and she hurled the television at him, which struck him in the back of the head and knocked him into the pond. After a minute or so, female Ranma emerged from the water, rubbing the large lump on her head. "What the heck was that for?! Would you cut it out already, Akane!" she snapped.

Akane ignored Ranma's protests, her attention focused on the fact that Hikaru Gosunkugi was in her yard. "What are you doing here, Gosunkugi?" she asked.

Gosunkugi blushed like a school girl from hearing Akane speak to him yet again, but then he remembered his task of getting rid of Ranma and shook himself out of his stupor. He appeared not to notice the change in Ranma's appearance, and he turned to the young martial artist and said, "Goodbye forever, Saotome! Enjoy your trip to the past!" Then he dumped the contents of the mortar into the pond.

Nothing appeared to happen. Ranma sat still for a brief moment to see if anything would take place, but when nothing did, she stood up in the pond and glared at Gosunkugi. "Alright, what's the big idea?" she growled. Gosunkugi simply started laughing again. In that instant, the pond began to give off an eerie glow. Confused, Ranma tried to jump out of the pond, but found that she was unable to move her feet. "What the-?!" she exclaimed.

"Ranma, what's going on?" Akane cried. The glow of the pond kept getting brighter, and then all of a sudden the water began swirl. Gosunkugi continued to laugh. "There, you see? It's working!" he bellowed triumphantly. Ranma struggled to move her feet, but to no avail. The water began to spin violently, forming a whirlpool. Then, all of a sudden it was as if the bottom of the pool dropped out from under her, and she was dragged into the depths of the water. "Gyaaaaahhh!!" She yelled, as the current of the whirlpool spun her around before she disappeared below the surface of the water.

"Ranma!" Akane called. She ran towards the pond.

Gosunkugi tried to stop her. "Wait! Akane you mustn't—!"

But it was too late. Akane had jumped into the pond in an attempt to rescue Ranma and was pulled into the whirlpool along with her. The pool continued to spin awhile after they were gone, and then it gradually returned to normal as if nothing had happened. The objects lay at the bottom of the pond, seemingly undisturbed.

Gosunkugi stood mortified. "Wha…what have I done? I just sent Akane back into…who knows what time period along with Ranma!" he said to himself. "What if she gets eaten by dinosaurs or…or something worse? I…I-I-I have to find a way to bring her back right away!"

He ran over to his things and retrieved his black magic book, sitting down under a tree to study it vigorously to find out how to bring Akane back.

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Kudos to anyone who caught the small reference to the second InuYasha movie! Review and let me know what you think, and there will be more to come very soon!


	2. Chapter 2

CervantesOsis: "When exactly on the quest will Ranma and Akane land?"

Just to answer this question for you readers, Ranma and Akane land right before the return of Orochi and Amaterasu. Like I said, with the addition of Ranma 1/2, the storyline of Okami will be slightly different, especially the reason why Orochi returns, but that's for you to find out later. Here's chapter 2!

-GFB

Disclaimer: Ranma 1/2 is copyrighted to Rumiko Takahashi and Viz media. Okami is copyrighted to Capcom and Clover Studios. This story is purely fan-based, with no intention of plagiarism or copyright infringement, and without any attempt to gain profit.

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Ranma gradually regained consciousness, her eyes fluttering open to a brilliant sunset up above, dark clouds passing overhead. She found herself to be sprawled out on her back on the ground, and she moved ever so slightly just to make sure she wasn't injured. Then carefully, she sat up and took in her surroundings, which didn't look familiar in any aspect whatsoever. "Where the heck am I?" she muttered. She appeared to be in a small clearing on top of a hill, with one of the biggest cherry blossom trees she had ever seen at the peak. There was a torii shrine gate behind her where the path leading up to the hill was, so she concluded that she must've been transported to a shrine somewhere. How and why, she had no idea, but once she got back to Nerima, she would be sure to give Gosunkugi a good piece of her mind. She noticed another, smaller torii gate near the tree, which contained a statue of a wolf. That must be the local shrine god. Then she turned to absorb the rest of her surroundings…when she noticed Akane sprawled out on the ground further away.

She sprang to her feet and ran over to Akane, kneeling beside her and checking to make sure she wasn't injured. She appeared to be alright, just unconscious as Ranma had been, so she lightly shook her to wake her up. "Akane! Akane, wake up!"

Akane groaned and her eyes eased open. She blinked a few times, and then she sat up slowly and surveyed her surroundings as Ranma had done. She turned to Ranma and said, "You're alright. Thank goodness."

"What the heck are you doing here? How did you get here with me?" Ranma demanded.

Akane frowned. "I was just trying to help you! How should I know how I got here? Where is here anyway? I don't even know where we are!"

"We're in some kind of shrine in the mountains I think." Ranma replied.

Akane got to her feet and dusted herself off. "Well, let's take a look around and find out where we are for sure. Maybe there's an information booth around here somewhere." She paused when she noticed the prominent features of the small clearing. "Is that a…a sakura tree? It's huge!"

"Hey Akane, this is sacred ground to the locals. Maybe we should get out of here quickly before we get caught here and have to try and explain ourselves." Ranma suggested.

Akane was too busy marveling at the new environment to pay her companion any notice. "Wait…isn't that a wolf?" she said, referring to the stone statue near the tree. "We couldn't be in…but that's impossible! That was just a story, right?"

Ranma raised an eyebrow. "What are you mumbling about, Akane? C'mon let's go!"

Akane approached the statue of the wolf, and found some writing engraved in the pedestal. "Hmm…I can't read this. It looks like Japanese but…I've never seen characters like this before. It must be my imagination then. There's no way this could be the same statue from the story."

Her speculation was interrupted when a pebble hit her in the head. "Ow! Ranma!" she yelped, wheeling around to reprimand the said martial artist.

"If you're all done playing around and being a tourist now, we should probably get going!" Ranma commanded. "I want to find out where we are before it gets dark so we can find a place to stay." With that, she turned and began heading down the hill along the path. "I need to find some hot water too." She added under her breath.

Akane grumbled to herself something about Ranma being a jerk, and then followed. They traveled down a steep, tree-lined path along the side of a cliff, the red sun falling below the horizon with each step they took. At the bottom of the hill, they came into another clearing, slightly larger than where the shrine had been. There were two small benches covered by parasols, so this was probably a leisure area used for resting. Two more stone paths originated from the clearing, one with a torii gate in front of it leading up and the other leading down.

"Which way should we go first?" Akane asked.

"There's still a little bit of light outside." Ranma answered. "Let's go up first. Maybe we can get a good look at where we are before the sun goes down." She began ascending the stone steps leading higher up and Akane followed close behind, rocky walls on both sides limiting their visibility. They came off the steps onto a cliff side, small cherry trees and a little pond decorating the area. Beyond the natural features was another torii gate in front of a round observation deck that stretched out over the cliff's edge. Ranma and Akane rushed up the ramp to the observation deck and peered over the edge. The sun was a mere sliver just above the horizon, but in the dim light, they could make out the forms of tiny houses below the cliff.

"Hey, a village!" Ranma said. "Great, we have a place to stay at least. C'mon Akane, we don't want to be stuck out here before it gets dark." She turned and headed back to the steps.

"What are you in such a hurry for?" Akane asked as she followed behind. "Aren't you used to being outdoors at night? What's so different that you have to find shelter before nightfall?"

"Well, normally I have my traveling stuff with me, and thanks to that voodoo-freak, I didn't have a chance to bring it with me, did I?" Ranma explained. "Besides, there's all kinds of weird critters that come out at night."

"What could you possibly be afraid of out here?" Akane said.

"I dunno…cats maybe? They like it more at night, you know." Ranma replied.

"Oh. Of course." Akane said, exasperated.

They reached the clearing and then headed further down to the stone steps on the opposite side. The sun had fallen behind the horizon by now, but luckily there were some lanterns along the path that lit the way for them in the dark. They made it to the end of the path, and another torii gate marked the entrance to the tiny village, nestled at the foot of the cliffs and hills that surrounded the area. With the little light provided by the moon, they made out the features of the village. A few small houses were grouped together in a row. Across from them was a vegetable garden, and next to the last house was a small rice paddy. On the other side of the rice paddy was a mill, presumably where the harvested rice went. A waterfall gushed into a large spring behind the row of houses, which fed into a small stream that divided the land of the village into two parts with a little wooden bridge connecting them. Across the stream was a larger house, and then an opening between a pair of high rock walls led out of the village. Small cherry trees and other plant life surrounded the area.

"How beautiful…" Akane whispered. "I can't wait to see how it looks during the day." She was so preoccupied with admiring the peaceful scenery that she barely noticed when Ranma had disappeared from her sight. She searched around frantically, until she spotted her companion heading over to the mill. "Hey!" she whispered loudly, so as not to disturb the quietness of the village, "Ranma, what are you doing?" She exclaimed, rushing over to catch up with her.

"First thing's first," Ranma replied, "I'm gonna find some hot water. There's probably some in here."

"But you can't just go in there without asking! We're strangers here remember?" Akane said.

"Relax Akane, we can explain it to the owner later." Ranma said, opening the door to the mill and heading inside. Akane made a noise of protest, but nonetheless she reluctantly followed. Inside the mill, they found several bales of rice stashed into a corner, a mortar for pounding the rice, several pots and cauldrons, and a press that was powered by the water mill, currently polishing the grains of rice. It was a sake brewery. There was also a small fire pit in the center, where a fire was currently heating a pot of water.

Ranma went over to the pot and tested the temperature of the water with her finger. "Perfect. Just the right temperature." She said, and then she lifted the pot by its handles and emptied the water onto her body, which promptly changed back to its original male form.

"There, much better!" He said contently, setting the pot down on the floor. He squeezed the excess water out of his hair and clothes and then turned to Akane, who was still giving him a look of disdain. "What? Geez…you know what, if it makes you feel any better I'll go replace the water." He said. He picked the pot back up and opened the door, and then he dropped it with a loud clang when he bumped into someone while trying to go out the door. The person fell back onto the ground with a startled cry.

"I'm sorry! Are you okay?" Ranma exclaimed, going over and helping the person up. He discovered that it was a young girl. She wore a red and yellow kimono, and she had thick, shoulder-length black hair. She also wore what looked like little rice bales on top her head as a decoration. "Yes…I'm alright." she said as he helped her to her feet, a very dark blush on her cheeks.

Akane had come out of the mill to see what had happened. "Nice going, Ranma." She said, annoyed. "Good luck explaining yourself now."

"Hey, it's not like I knew she was right outside!" Ranma snapped.

"Umm…is there something I can help you with?" the girl asked.

Ranma chuckled nervously. "Uh…yeah, well you see…my companion and I were…traveling…and we needed some hot water, so we found your humble little abode and since no one was here we let ourselves in. Sorry for the intrusion." He explained.

The girl smiled and gave a polite little bow. "It's okay. If you needed something, I don't mind." She picked up the jug that she had been carrying when she fell, taking it over and setting it down on the floor inside the mill. "I was just up at the spring in the forest getting some more water, and it got dark before I got back to the village. Oh, how rude of me…my name is Kushi, by the way."

Ranma returned her bow. "I'm Ranma Saotome, and this is Akane Tendo." Akane bowed at the mention of her name and said, "Nice to meet you."

"Are you travelers from the city?" Kushi asked.

"Uh…yeah something like that." Ranma replied. "We kind of…got lost. So if you don't mind, do you know if there's somewhere we could stay in this village?"

Kushi smiled. "You're welcome to stay with me if you like. I live all by myself, so it'd be nice to have some company."

"Really? Thanks!" Ranma said. Then he nudged Akane and whispered, "See, I told you it'd work out." She gave him a "hmph" and crossed her arms.

Kushi lead them from the mill over to her house on the other side of the rice paddy. She opened the door for them and they stepped inside. It wasn't a very big house, but everything about this village they were in was rather petite, so they weren't expecting anything extravagant. Kushi's house was subdivided by sliding doors covered with rice paper into two rooms, the first was just an entryway with a dirt floor, and the second had a floor covered by tatami mats, where she slept and kept all her belongings. The smell of aging sake permeated through the house, coming from a large barrel in the corner of the entryway.

"I hope you don't mind the smell." Kushi said. "I'm a sake brewer. It's been a job handed down through my family for generations."

"Smells delicious." Ranma said. "This is a nice and cozy place you've got."

"Thank you so much for letting us stay." Akane said. "Are you sure we won't be any trouble to you?"

"No trouble at all." Kushi replied. "But I'm sorry to say, I only have one extra futon, so one of you might have to sleep on the floor. Unless…you can share it?"

Ranma and Akane blushed darkly. "Uh…no! It's okay! I don't mind taking the floor!" Ranma exclaimed, chuckling nervously.

Kushi went into her room and rummaged through her dresser. "I can at least give you a few blankets so you won't be cold though. Will that be alright?"

"Yeah, that's fine." Ranma replied.

She came back out with a rolled up futon and a bundle of blankets, and then she started laying them out on the floor. "The city is a very long ways away from here." She said. "What brings you to Kamiki?"

Akane became dumbstruck. "Uh…did you just say Kamiki?"

"Yes," Kushi replied, "this is Kamiki Village."

Akane stared at Kushi like something had come crawling out of her ears. "Um…is something wrong?" Kushi asked.

Ranma looked anxiously from Akane to Kushi. Then he turned to Kushi and said, "Nah, it's alright! She's just uh…she's surprised we made it this far! Yeah! Heh heh…right Akane?"

"So then…this is the same village from that story?" Akane asked, still very stunned.

"Oh, so you've heard of our village's legend? The legend of Nagi and Shiranui?" Kushi replied.

"Yeah, that's the one! My mother told me about it when I was a little girl." Akane said.

"Wow, so the tale has reached even the city? That's amazing. I had no idea we were so famous." Kushi said. She finished setting up the futon and dusting it off, and then she started laying out the blankets. "It's been exactly one hundred years since the terrible Orochi's defeat at the hands of Nagi and Shiranui, and we still hold the Moon Festival here in Kamiki every year on that day to commemorate their victory and our long era of peace. We even have a shrine near the great Konohana tree to honor Shiranui."

_So that really was the same statue from the story._ Akane thought. _But that can only mean…_

Kushi finished laying out their beds for them. "Here you are." She said. "I hope you'll be able to sleep well. If you need anything else, let me know." She went into her room and bid them good night, putting out her lantern.

Ranma and Akane settled into their makeshift beds. "Get a good night's sleep Akane. We're getting up early tomorrow morning so we can start heading back to Nerima." Ranma whispered to her.

"Ranma…I don't think…" Akane began.

"What? What is it?"

"Nevermind, you'll just think I'm crazy." She said.

Ranma propped himself up on his elbows and looked at her. "C'mon, tell me. What's eating you?"

"It's just…I don't think we can get back to Nerima. I don't even think Nerima exists yet."

Ranma quirked an eyebrow. "What are you talking about, Akane?"

"I think…" Akane said, "I think Gosunkugi sent us back in time!"

Ranma snorted, trying not to laugh. "That's a good one Akane. You ever thought about being a comedian? I bet your jokes are a lot better than your cooking."

Akane turned away from him and pulled the covers over her head. "I told you you wouldn't believe me." She growled. "But I'm being serious. Kushi said that the story was exactly one hundred years old, but when my mother read it to me, she told me it was over a thousand years old. That would mean that we're in Kamiki Village, 900 years in the past."

"Or maybe you just hit your head when you fell, Akane." Ranma said, turning over and laying back down. "Come on, Gosunkugi may be a creep, but he couldn't have sent us back in time. Even if this place is called Kamiki Village, it's probably just some little rural area in the mountains. We'll head out tomorrow morning, and be back in Nerima before you know it. And then we can kick the living daylight out of Gosunkugi when we get back. G'night, Akane."

Akane simply huffed and closed her eyes. Ranma wouldn't believe her no matter what she said, so he'd probably find out the hard way sooner or later. She relaxed herself, filling her head with thoughts of the legend of Shiranui, imagining the great battle between the dreaded eight-headed serpent Orochi, the warrior Nagi and the majestic white wolf Shiranui, and she drifted off into sleep.

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Again, reviews are very much appreciated. (hint hint wink wink).


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